Proud of Pride

Authored by Nakul Bahiya, Director -Talent GroupM & Motivator

Every year, during the month of June we celebrate Pride Month. A month dedicated to pride community to highlight their struggles and challenges. While the world is moving in a progressive direction, there is also a growing sense of extremism, aggression, suppression, and hatred. Pride month is often misinterpreted as an annual festival or rainbow-themed parties and parades, with very few understanding its true significance. In reality, pride is a visual image of hope for everyone. It is us all collectively shouting out loud and sending out a message that ‘You can be WHOEVER you want to be.’ Pride is about discovering who you are and being proud and comfortable in your own skin. I am talking about people, who are just like you and me, but they struggle to access their basic rights. Today our pride community needs us more than ever, so if you are a dormant supporter like me, it is time you too jump out of the closet, become an ally and be proud of pride.

Coming out in open is still a herculean task in most parts of the world. It requires that we be vulnerable and brave at the same time. We get into the habit of erasing parts of ourselves and making our truth very small, we give our power away. Employees at workplace often feel restricted by norms, traditions, other people’s expectations. They let fear, guilt, and shame keep them from following their most genuine desires. An inclusive workplace should enable us to embrace the diverse backgrounds and perspectives of all our people to create better outcomes for clients and society. Rewards & opportunities should be linked to performance & potential and not to an individual’s sexual orientation & race. Diverse candidates from this cohort often struggle to find right jobs and even if they do, acceptance & equity is always a challenge. it is time for we break our colonial shackles and move towards a paradigm shift, where being different is accepted and celebrated and is not being frowned upon.      

Another reason for celebrating Pride is so that their (predecessor’s) struggles are not forgotten and to help progress continue. To recognize the resilience and determination of the many individuals who have fought and are fighting to live freely and authentically. In doing so, they are opening hearts and minds, and laying the foundation of a new world order, which is for a more just and equitable. Today, we can live out and proud, having completely different lives than those who paved the way for us. We can hold hands, dress how we want, have families, and for the most part do so with lesser fear of backlash than before. A lot of brave women and men fought for that, and what we have today is thanks to them. We have come a long way but there is still a lot to achieve, but for now let us take a minute or a month and be proud of pride.     

Lastly, However, you wish to celebrate pride month, the end goal should be to raise awareness and encourage inclusiveness in whatever capacity we can. If you are from LGTBQA + community or wish to create a difference and believe in inclusiveness, remember, you are not alone.